Infant kidnapped from CSMT rescued in Nashik; 1 held

According to the police, accused, who is from Nashik, allegedly came to Mumbai on March 24, to kidnap a child as she and her husband, who had been married for 10 years, did not have one.

A two-month-old boy was rescued from Nashik on Monday, two weeks after he was kidnapped from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT).Officers of the Thane crime branch traced the kidnapper, Neelam Bora, 35, from Nashik, while they were working on another case of kidnapping in Mumbra.

A two-month-old boy was rescued from Nashik on Monday, two weeks after he was kidnapped from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT).(HT Photo)

Hemant Bawdhankar, senior inspector, CSMT, government railway police (GRP) said, “We worked on the case along with the Thane police. The Thane police reunited the child with his family. It’s a relief that the boy has been rescued safely. Bora is in police custody and will be produced in court tomorrow. We will file a charge sheet soon.”

According to the police, Bora, who is from Nashik, allegedly came to Mumbai on March 24, to kidnap a child as she and her husband, who had been married for 10 years, did not have one. They were desperate for a child, said the police. After reaching CSMT, she loitered around the platforms and nearby areas for a couple of days. On March 29, Bora saw a rag-picker and her two-month-old child sleeping on platform number 8. When the mother went to the washroom, a burkha-clad Bora picked up the child and went away to Mulund station. The child’s mother approached the police and a complaint was registered with the CSMT GRP.

Meanwhile, the Thane police, who were investigating the Mumbra kidnapping case, realised that the kidnapper looked similar to Bora. “Our officers were investigating a case where a nine-month-old boy was kidnapped by a burkha-clad woman from Mumbra station, in the first week of February. While scrutinising the CCTV footage, we saw that the accused looked similar to the one who had kidnapped the two-month-old boy from CSMT. We started searching for her.”

Following the leads, a team of Thane crime branch officers went to Nashik and arrested Bora’s husband, Sanjay. “He said that two months ago, Neelam had told her family that she had given birth to a baby boy,” said an officer from Thane commissionerate, who does not wish to be named, adding that Sanjay told them Bora was at her relative’s place in Nashik. The police then went to Panchavati in Nashik on Monday, arrested Neelam and rescued the baby, said an officer from Thane crime branch unit -1.

“The child was reunited with his family. The Mumbra boy has not been found yet,” he said, adding that Bora was not the kidnapper in the Mumbra case.